Structural unit



2 Sheets-She et 1 Ill! lllllilllilll Illlllllllllllllll.

up i INVENTOR EDWARD H.M CL/NTOCK ATTORNEYS E. H. MCCLINTOCK May 14, 1935.

STRUCTURAL UNIT Filed Aug. 5, 1934 Patented May 14, 1935 a l 2,001,428

UNITED STATES FATE;

STRUCTURAL UNI-T Edward H. McClintock, West Springfield, Mass. Application August 1934, Serial No. 738,818

6 Claims. (01. 189-40) This invention relates to an improved strucirons. The cross sectional shape of the strip tural unit of the composite type for use in floor H need not necessarily be square as shown. and wall constructions. It may be modified, as desired, to meet various The object of the invention is to provide a conditions and expose a greater or less width structural unit, in which a nailing medium, such of the strip between the angle irons. It may also 5 as wood or any other material suitable for the be modified, as will later; appear, to cooperate purpose, may be effectively clamped and laterally with angle irons in which the angle between the compressed between two angular bars of metal in two legs .is greater or less than ninety degrees.

a novel manner by simple and relatively inex- Also, the legs of the angle irons need notbe of pensive'means, the unit having the qualities of equallength,,as will be clear from'Figr 6 where 10 light weight combined with strength and prethe space between the lower corners of the two senting one or more nailing surfaces. angle irons is less than thatbetween the two The invention also contemplates floor and wall upper corners. So. also, it will be seen from constructions of novel form in which these struc- 'Fig. 6 that it is not always necessary to chamfer FFlCE l5 tural units are employed, either as nailing screeds the edges, as described. .The main essential is or load bearing members, such as beams or studs that the strip I l have four faces M which present,

and struts. two oppositely disposed wedge-shaped portions The invention has for a further object the adapted to be engaged one by'each of the angle provision of a floor construction embodying a irons,

2O plurality of these structural units, used to sup-. These angle irons areasecured together and p r 21- n om a n W th a c a ne the wood, or'other filler, clamped and compressed r fi e-p u a ing or sound deadentherebetween in asimple and inexpensive but- Or other a a uc on a er taking the very effective. manner ,by a wedge-like action. form of a pan of she t metal, pp d by and Considering any one section of the} structural 25 between adjacent units n a n v l mannerunit, va single bolt suchias l5-is used for the 25 These and other objects will more particularly purpose, According to. prior art methods two pp r as e detailed description proceeds a d bolts have been used for clamping a wood piece Will be pointed ut h ppe ded c a between two angle irons. In such case, the-bolts The invention will be described with reference e l ted at, right angles andeach passes 0 he accompanying d awings, in which: through one'leg of one angle'iron and the op- 30 Fig. 1 is a cross sectional View of a structural posite leg of the other angle iron. No wedge unit embodying y invention; like action can result with such an arrangement, Figs. 2 and 3 are sectional elevational and According to my invention, a single boltis used, cross se ti n l vi w r p v ly, h w a such bolt passing diagonally across the wood or ficcr construction including a plurality Ofd other strip II :and through the corners of the 35 Un 'two angle irons. As shown in Fig.3, each angle 4 is a fragmentary Side V w Of e pan iron has a slot l6 which may be formed by a shown in Fig. 2; single punching operation, and made of sufiicient 5 ShOWS the pp a of the u t to a depth so as to leave a rectangular hole I! at 40 Slightly d fi e f rm of floor construction; the corner of the angle'iron through which the 0 and bolt may be passed. 1 The vertical walls of the 6 ShOWS t app t f t uni s to One slot I6 receive between them, and closely fit two form of wall construction. opposite sidesof the nut I8 and hold it against Referring t these d awin s andparticularly rotation while the screw-slotted head 20 r the to Fig. 1; the structural unit is composed of bolt is turned. The slot lfi may'also receive a 5 a. pair of angle irons I0 between which wood, or washer, such as. H], or other members such as any other suitable nailing medium,- is received those shown in Fig. 6. The bolt pressure, apd compressed in a novel and advantageous plied to each angle iron in the way shown may be manner. As shown, a strip of wood I! is emresolvedfinto, two forces, one acting squarely 5 'ployed asthenailing medium and this strip is of .against each of the pair ofengaged faces I4 of substantially square cross section,.modified by the strip H. The woodstrip is thus compressed chemfcling the edges,.1eeving diagonally D- in a very effective manner by asingle bolt.- In posite fiat surfaces l2 exposed between the angle the particular example shown, a bolt pressure of irons and, preferably also, diagonally opposite 1000 lbs. may safely be obtained and this presflat surfaces l3,adjacent the fillets of the angle sure may be resolved into separate forces of 707 I 5 V lbs. acting against each wedge face [4. Necessarily by decreasing the angle of the wedge an increase in the pressure on the wedge faces can be obtained using the same bolt pressure.

case may be, and the bolts 15, which are 'ap.-

plied at suitable intervals throughout the lengt of the unit, parallel such floor or wall.- r

In Figs. 2 and 3, the invention is shown as applied to a floor construction. In this embodiment of the invention, steel joists 21, eachin itself affording the requisite strength and yet of light weight, are, interconnected at suitable intervals by these structural units. Each unit rests upon the upper flanges 22 of the steel joists and is secured thereto in any suitable manner,

:as for example by a wood screw 22', passed through each said flangeand threaded into the overlying strip 1 i, entering the lower fiat face l2 thereof, The floorboards 23 rest upon the exposed upper faces 12 of the units and are nailed thereto, as'indicated at 24. .1,

' nnother feature of the invention consists in combining with these structural units a sheet metal pan-whichserves as a container for any material'desired for thepurposes of fire-proofing,

sound-deadening, or insu1atio-n,gsuch as-the rock wool All, for example. This pan, designated 25,

. is of a width such as to span the space between '15. 'as possible toward the illustrated position, .oruntwo adjacent units andsof a depth at least no greater than 'the width of the unit; measured across the faces 12 thereof. The pan has downwardly converging sides'2'l, slopedto conform to the slope of the upper legs of the two angle ironsand is, or may be, supported solely by .its weight resting on such faces. 1 To hold these pans against-displacement, .I provide in the sloping sidesa series of struckout' lips 28, substantially square-inshape and located one adjacent the head or nut of each bolt 15. .'Ihe striking: out of each -lip' 28 leaves a square hole 29, into which the.

head 26 of the bolt l5, itslwa'sher l9,'or the nut l8 partially enters. The lips iii-underlie such heads, washers or nuts as the case may be. The pan isput in place by-first engaging onesloping side 21 with one structural unit, causing the lips 23 to slidebeneath the nuts or heads of the bolts Then the pan is swung downwardly as far til the lips 28 strike the heads or nuts ofthe bolts Q5 of the other structural unit. Thenthe lips 28 are pried down by a screwdriver or other tool until they slide into place between such nuts or heads. The pan is thus simply but efnal,'lateral and vertical directions.

, Another embodiment of the invention shown in Fig. 5. This is a first floor construction, where the wood flooring 23 is to beapplied just above a concrete floor, designated 30; Here the structural unitsare interposed between-the parts 23 and 30 resting, as for example, on pads of mortar 3! spreadonthe concrete. The structural units are tamped down in'these'beds of mortar so as to lie level. They are thuspartially imbedded in themortarJ In some cases, the units J :tive, such as star, creosote ,or the like, this premay be completely imbedded in a concrete floor or wall 'with the upper faces t2 o'f thestrips...l.l

'receiving fire-proof or insulating material. I floor is thus protected against dry rot because dampness cannotpenetrate from the underlying fectively held against displacementin longitudifiush orjust slightly above the top surface of the concrete. In this case as well as in the example shown in Fig. 5, it may be desirable to protect the wood from moisture and for this purpose it may be impregnated with creosote, painted with tar or otherwise treated before being clamped between the angle irons. Also, a metal strip, such as 33, may be laid over the: two lowermost faces M of strip, II and the extreme lower face l2 thereof and clamped in place'as shown. In this case, I may use the pan 26,. applied to the structural units in the same way, for the purpose of The concrete. to cause it and it is insulated against cold from theunderlying concrete, which in this caseis. laiddirectly on the ground.

A furtherv variation in the floor construction consistsin imbedding the structural units in concrete,using them solely forthe purpose of nailing screeds. v I

The invention is also applicable t'o vall constructions, oneexample of which-is illustrated in Fig. 6; Here'the structural units are mounted upright and used as struts orstuds. They areof the same general .form asdescribed except that; the legs of each of the angle irons 1B are ofdifferent lengths. In Fig.6, the interior wall'surface is formed by sheets 35 of metal extending betweenadjacent units and-having opposite vertical edges inturned at acute angles'a's at 35 to .lie between the wood strip 4 l and the angle irons Hi; .In order that adjacent sheets35may abut;

as shown,the inner legs-of the 'angle irons'are made longer and'the lower cornerlof the strip II is left square. The interior surface --of these sheets of metal may'be painted or treatedin various ways to provide a decorative finish, 'as by graining them" to reser'nblewood, by stippling them and so forth. It is to be noted that the sheets 35 will be drawn taut betweenthe angle irons It! When the bolts ISare tightened; The exterior surface may consist of sheet metal 'or other siding 36, nailed as indicated at 31 to the wood strips i I". In'this construction, girts 38 or any suitable formare shown as interconnecting adjacent units, the ends of such girts being clamped in place by the bolts l6. The space between theunits and the walls 35 and 36-ma'y be filled with insulation 39. ii

It will be noted that the strip, H, of wood or equivalent material'may be very effectively compressed between the angle irons; It' isheld-by pressure applied to: and distributed equally on all four of its main faces and only such relativelylsmall areasof the strip. are exposed". as are necessary to receive the nails 'orcotherfastenings employed: It'is very important that .the strip I I be laterally compressed :to .prevent' it from splitting" when nails are driven into -the "same. Also, when these units are used'rin conangle irons, would swell and later shrink and become loose. A loose screeolfi; especially-if ;of 'small size, is liable to crack whenaxnail is, driven into it- Thus, such a. screed aifords a. poor -means in which to'firmly fasten-the floor boards.

When the strips H, are coated with presergaservative is protected by the. angle, irons t0.

The invention affords a composite structural unit having strength combined with lightness and affording one or more nailing surfaces. The floor construction of Figs. 2 and 3, excluding the steel joists and flooring as is customary but including the pan 26 and assuming it to be filled with rock wool insulation 40, has the remarkably low weight of four pounds per square foot or about half the weight of the lightest commercial form of floor construction with which I am familiar. The construction is likewise relatively inexpensive, being made up as it is, from a square strip of wood, a relatively few bolts and angle bars of standard form punched to receive the bolts. The construction forms an excellent substitute for wooden joists and lends itself well to fire-proofing, water-proofing, insulating or sound deadening.

The invention has been disclosed herein, in an embodiment at present preferred, forillustrative purposes but it is recognized thatthe invention is susceptible, to many variations and capable of being embodied in various forms differing specifically from the one herein disclosed. It is therefore desired to have the scope of the invention defined by the appended claims rather than by the foregoing description.

What I claim is:

1. A composite structural unit, comprising, a strip of nailing medium presenting a pair of opposed wedge-shaped portions, a pair of loadbearing angle bars of metal one for each said wedge-shaped portion, each angle bar having the legs thereof engaged one with each of the two faces of its wedge-shaped portion and throughout substantially the entire length thereof .and having the corner of the angle bar located adjacent the narrow part of the wedge, and means acting on the angle bars along the corners thereof for drawing said bars together to compress said strip therebetween.

2. A composite structural unit, comprising, a strip of nailing medium presenting a pair of opposed wedge-shaped portions, a pair of loadbearing angle bars of metal one for each said wedge-shaped portion, each angle bar having the legs thereof engaged one with each of the two faces of its wedge-shaped portion and throughout substantially the entire length thereof and having the corner of the angle bar located adjacent the narrow part of the wedge, and fastening devices for drawing said angle bars together to clamp said strip therebetween, each said device extending through the corner of each angle bar and through said wedge portions.

3. A composite structural unit, comprising, a strip of nailing medium presenting a pair of opposed wedge-shaped portions, a pair of loadbearing angle bars of metal one for each said wedge-shaped portion, each angle bar having the legs thereof engaged one with each of the two faces of its wedge-shaped portion and throughout substantially the entire length thereof and having the corner of the angle bar located adjacent the narrow part of the wedge, and means acting on the angle bars along the corners thereof for drawing said bars together to compress said strip therebetween, the outer end of at least one leg of each angle bar being spaced from the correopposed wedge-shaped portions, a pair of load-. bearing angle bars of metal-one for each said wedge-shaped portion, each angle bar having the legs thereof engaged one with each of the two i faces of its wedge-shaped portion and throughout substantially the entire length thereof and having the corner of the angle bar located adjacent the narrow part of the wedge, and fastening devices 'for drawing said angle bars together to clamp said strip therebetween, each said device extending through the corner of each angle bar and through said wedge portions, the outer end of at least one leg of each angle bar being spaced from the corresponding leg of the other angle bar to expose therebetween a portion of said nailing medium. 5. A composite structural unit, comprising, a

strip of nailing medium presenting. opposed wedge-shaped portions and an intervening portion into which nails or the like may be driven,

a pair of load-bearing angle bars of metal, one' for each said wedge-shaped portion and each presenting two legs radiating from a common corner edge; the said legs of each bar being angularly spaced to fit the angle of its wedge-shaped portion and being engaged one with each of the two faces of such portion,.and fastening devices extending through the corner edges of the angle' bars and through said wedge-shaped portions in bisecting relation for drawing said bars together and compressing said medium therebetween by pressures equally distributed on each of the four faces of the two wedge-shaped portions.

6. A "composite structural unit, comprising, a strip of nailing medium presenting opposed wedge-shaped portions and an intervening portion into which nails or the like may be driven, a pair of load-bearing angle bars of, metal, one for each said wedge-shaped portion and each presenting two legs radiating from a common corner edge, the said legs of each bar being angularly spaced to fit the angle of its wedge-shaped portion'and being engaged one with each of the two faces of such portion, and fastening devices extending through the corner edges of the angle bars and through said wedge-shaped portions in bisecting relation for drawing said bars together and compressing said medium therebetween by pressures equally distributed on each of the four faces of the two wedge-shaped portions, the outer edge of at leastone leg of one angle bar being spaced from the outer edge of the corresponding leg of the other angle bar. to expose said intervening portion of said medium.

EDWARD H. McCLINTQCK. 

